Redbourne is a small village to the south of Scunthorpe and Brigg, and a dormitory village for both. The primary school and post office both closed a long time ago, although it still has a working blacksmith and the Red Lion pub has survived.
The church is nno longer used and in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. There is little information about it on the internet and it isn't well known. This is a pity as it has some of the best examples of Georgian enamelled glass windows and especially the east window.
There is no church recorded in Domesday book although there are records of a priest here from the C12th. The present building is mainly C14th and C15th. North and south chapels were added in the late C18th, when a clerestory was added and plaster vaulted ceilings.
The church tower is very tall and slender compared with the rest of the building. It originally had a small wooden steeple. The top two tiers were added in 1785 by the Rev Robert Carter Thelwall, who was Lord of the Manor. This increased the height of the tower so he couldsee it from Redbourne Hall. The narrow tower on the south east corner gave access to the bell chamber and has an old sundial on the south wall.
His daughter married married Lord William Beauclerk, a descendant of Charles II and Nell Gwyn. After her death in 1797, William inherited the Redbourne estates. He became the 8th Duke of St Albans in 1816. He was responsible for rebuilding the south chapel as a mausoleum for the Dukes of St Albans. Their memorials and hatchments are displayed in the chancel.
The enamelled east window dates from around 1830 with those of the twelve apostles being added afterwards.
The church was restored in the late C19th when the gallery was removed, plaster stripped from walls and pine pews added. The west door was blocked up and a south porch and door added.
The Dukes of St Albans held the Lordship of the Manor until 1917, when the estate had to be sold to cover mounting debt, heavy wartime taxation and also the costs of the 11th Duke’s long term medical confinement. He suffered from severe mental issues and was of ‘unsound mind’ and was legally designated a "Chancery lunatic"
The Reverend Tremearne was vicar from 1931-71. He was responsible for the green and orange paint on the nave pillars and the painted north door. He was a controversial figure who was at war with his parishioners over many issues. The church was almost derelict by the end of his tenure.
The Church was declared redundant in the late 1970s and came under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust who have restored and repaired the church. The church is opened daily and there are information boards around the church.
The church is in the centre of the village and is surrounded by trees and a well maintained churchyard.
The top of the tower, nave, chancel and side aisles are battlemented and there are tall slender pinnacles on the side aisles. The nave, aisles and clerestory have lead roofs. The mausoleum in the south chapel, vestry and porch are slated. There is a mass sundial on the south wall near the mausoleum.
The west door is now blocked.
Entry is through the south door into the nave with its arcade of hexagonal pillars painted with orange or green chevrons.
The late C18th white marble font stands at the back of the nave.
Although the west door was blocked off in the C19th, the inner wooded door is still there and was painted during the tenure of Reverend Tremearne, who was also responsible for the painted nave pillars.
Above it, the west window is very different to the rest with its pastel shades of Victorian glass. There are old gravestones against the walls, including one to Thomas Waterhouse who died in 1723 and left money for the poor of the parish.
The pulpit, altar and altar rails are also late C17th.
Opposite is a brass lectern.
Old choir stalls are pushed against the side walls.
On the chancel walls are memorials to the Dukes of St Albans and their wives along with their funerary hatchments.
On the north side of the chancel is a massive black marble grave slab to Sir Gerald Sothill who died in 1410. This is set below an ogee arch with a heraldic shield with an eagle above. Sir Gerald was Lord of the Manor as well as Sheriff of Lincolnshire and a justice of the peace. He is in full chain mail armour with a dagger and sword. His feet are resting on a greyhound and his head is supported by angels.
Next to it is a small organ with painted pipes. There are more organ pipes in the north aisle as the north chapel now houses the organ chamber and also serves as a parish room.
The highlight of the church is the wonderful enamelled east window which really glows with sunlight coming through it.
This was designed by Francis Dalby and made by William Collins from around 1830. It is one of the best examples of Georgian enamelled glass in the country. Most was replaced by the Victorians who preferred the more traditional medieval stained glass look.
Collins painted glass enamel paints directly onto large sheets of glass so there is no lead holding smaller pieces of glass in place. The glass was then baked in a kiln to fuse the colours to the surface of the glass.
The window depicts the Opening of the Sixth Seal on the Day of Judgement from the Book of Revelation. It marks the arrival of the "Great Day of God's wrath".
“And when he opened the sixth seal there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto earth and the stars in the sky fell to earth as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind.and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”
At the bottom is the depiction of Christ as the Lamb of God with the sixth seal broken. The main panel is a dramatic representation of humanity trying to escape and hide from the impending day of judgement.
Side aisles have colourful representations of the twelve apostles also by William Collins. Two are missing as they were removed into the north chapel when the south porch and door were added.
St Andrew’s Church surprisingly does not feature in Simon Jenkin’s ‘England’s Thousand Best Churches’. The enamelled east window is unique and definitely repays a visit. The Duke of St Alban’s memorials are a bonus!
website
The church is nno longer used and in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. There is little information about it on the internet and it isn't well known. This is a pity as it has some of the best examples of Georgian enamelled glass windows and especially the east window.
There is no church recorded in Domesday book although there are records of a priest here from the C12th. The present building is mainly C14th and C15th. North and south chapels were added in the late C18th, when a clerestory was added and plaster vaulted ceilings.
The church tower is very tall and slender compared with the rest of the building. It originally had a small wooden steeple. The top two tiers were added in 1785 by the Rev Robert Carter Thelwall, who was Lord of the Manor. This increased the height of the tower so he couldsee it from Redbourne Hall. The narrow tower on the south east corner gave access to the bell chamber and has an old sundial on the south wall.
His daughter married married Lord William Beauclerk, a descendant of Charles II and Nell Gwyn. After her death in 1797, William inherited the Redbourne estates. He became the 8th Duke of St Albans in 1816. He was responsible for rebuilding the south chapel as a mausoleum for the Dukes of St Albans. Their memorials and hatchments are displayed in the chancel.
The enamelled east window dates from around 1830 with those of the twelve apostles being added afterwards.
The church was restored in the late C19th when the gallery was removed, plaster stripped from walls and pine pews added. The west door was blocked up and a south porch and door added.
The Dukes of St Albans held the Lordship of the Manor until 1917, when the estate had to be sold to cover mounting debt, heavy wartime taxation and also the costs of the 11th Duke’s long term medical confinement. He suffered from severe mental issues and was of ‘unsound mind’ and was legally designated a "Chancery lunatic"
The Reverend Tremearne was vicar from 1931-71. He was responsible for the green and orange paint on the nave pillars and the painted north door. He was a controversial figure who was at war with his parishioners over many issues. The church was almost derelict by the end of his tenure.
The Church was declared redundant in the late 1970s and came under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust who have restored and repaired the church. The church is opened daily and there are information boards around the church.
The church is in the centre of the village and is surrounded by trees and a well maintained churchyard.
The top of the tower, nave, chancel and side aisles are battlemented and there are tall slender pinnacles on the side aisles. The nave, aisles and clerestory have lead roofs. The mausoleum in the south chapel, vestry and porch are slated. There is a mass sundial on the south wall near the mausoleum.
The west door is now blocked.
Entry is through the south door into the nave with its arcade of hexagonal pillars painted with orange or green chevrons.
The late C18th white marble font stands at the back of the nave.
Although the west door was blocked off in the C19th, the inner wooded door is still there and was painted during the tenure of Reverend Tremearne, who was also responsible for the painted nave pillars.
Above it, the west window is very different to the rest with its pastel shades of Victorian glass. There are old gravestones against the walls, including one to Thomas Waterhouse who died in 1723 and left money for the poor of the parish.
The pulpit, altar and altar rails are also late C17th.
Opposite is a brass lectern.
Old choir stalls are pushed against the side walls.
On the chancel walls are memorials to the Dukes of St Albans and their wives along with their funerary hatchments.
On the north side of the chancel is a massive black marble grave slab to Sir Gerald Sothill who died in 1410. This is set below an ogee arch with a heraldic shield with an eagle above. Sir Gerald was Lord of the Manor as well as Sheriff of Lincolnshire and a justice of the peace. He is in full chain mail armour with a dagger and sword. His feet are resting on a greyhound and his head is supported by angels.
Next to it is a small organ with painted pipes. There are more organ pipes in the north aisle as the north chapel now houses the organ chamber and also serves as a parish room.
The highlight of the church is the wonderful enamelled east window which really glows with sunlight coming through it.
This was designed by Francis Dalby and made by William Collins from around 1830. It is one of the best examples of Georgian enamelled glass in the country. Most was replaced by the Victorians who preferred the more traditional medieval stained glass look.
Collins painted glass enamel paints directly onto large sheets of glass so there is no lead holding smaller pieces of glass in place. The glass was then baked in a kiln to fuse the colours to the surface of the glass.
The window depicts the Opening of the Sixth Seal on the Day of Judgement from the Book of Revelation. It marks the arrival of the "Great Day of God's wrath".
“And when he opened the sixth seal there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto earth and the stars in the sky fell to earth as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind.and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”
At the bottom is the depiction of Christ as the Lamb of God with the sixth seal broken. The main panel is a dramatic representation of humanity trying to escape and hide from the impending day of judgement.
Side aisles have colourful representations of the twelve apostles also by William Collins. Two are missing as they were removed into the north chapel when the south porch and door were added.
St Andrew’s Church surprisingly does not feature in Simon Jenkin’s ‘England’s Thousand Best Churches’. The enamelled east window is unique and definitely repays a visit. The Duke of St Alban’s memorials are a bonus!
website
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